I couldn’t wish for better

GOOD LIFE: Mercy Services provides community and in-home support across various parts of Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and the Lower Hunter region of NSW to people like Ted Peters.

Ted Peters’ family begged him not to go into an aged care facility, but he reckons he’s the one living the good life at Mercy Services Residential Aged Care at Singleton.

They don’t know what they’re missing. If all homes are the same as this one, I couldn’t think of a better place to live.

Ted Peters

It’s an age-old dilemma and if the truth be told, it’s a decision that families all over the nation wrestle with.

Often decisions are delayed until some sort of crisis forces the issue.

When is the right time for an older family member to move into an aged care facility?

Making or contributing to life-changing decisions for someone you love can be tough and often divides families.

But Ted Peters was having no arguments.

The 90-year-old former coal miner recounts how his children begged him not to go into residential care.

“Well it’s what I wanted to do. I didn’t want to be a burden to any of my family. I love them all, they’re all good to me and everything but I didn’t want to be a burden to them. Do you understand what I mean?”

Ted lived by himself in the Hunter Valley town of Branxton since losing his darling wife Thelma to breast cancer 30 years ago.

He had already downsized from the family home to a two-bedroom townhouse but as time went on he felt strongly that moving into Mercy Services Residential Aged Care at Singleton was a great option.

“My legs don’t work like they used to!” he laughs.

Food is a great love for Ted and he reports it’s a positive feature of the living arrangement he’s enjoyed for the past two years.

“I don’t think I could wish for better. As far as I’m concerned for an old man it’s 100 per cent.

“You get looked after, you get good meals and you get morning tea and afternoon tea.

“So there’s plenty to eat if you want it”.

Press a bit further and Ted admits his favourite part of the week is when his son brings in a couple of stubbies to share over a chat on Wednesday afternoons.

And the staff offer him a beer on Fridays and Sundays!

Some people are hesitant but to anyone who’s worried about the prospect of life in an aged care facility when the time comes, Ted declares, “I say they don’t know what they’re missing.

“If all homes are the same as this one, I couldn’t think of a better place to live.”